That's higher than 19% of South Dakota police departments.
We obtained data on 105 South Dakota police departments.
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Police Department
Sioux Falls
Scorecard at a Glance
Average for 4 Sections: 47%
Scores range from 0-100% comparing cities with 100-250k population. Cities with higher scores spend less on policing, use less force, are more likely to hold officers accountable and make fewer arrests for low-level offenses.
Worse
50th Percentile
Better
| Police Funding: 69% | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Police Budget Cost per Person | ||||
| Misconduct Settlements | ||||
| Fines/Forfeitures | ||||
| Police Presence/Over-Policing (Officers per Population) | ||||
| Police Violence: 64% | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Force Used per Arrest | ||||
| Deadly Force per Arrest | ||||
| Unarmed Victims of Deadly Force per Arrest | ||||
| Racial Disparities in Deadly Force | ||||
Worse
50th Percentile
Better
| Police Accountability: 19% | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Misconduct Complaints Upheld | ||||
| Excessive Force Complaints Upheld | ||||
| Discrimination Complaints Upheld | ||||
| Criminal Misconduct Complaints Upheld | ||||
| Approach to Law Enforcement: 36% | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Arrest Rate for Low Level Offenses | ||||
| Homicides Solved | ||||
| Racial Disparities in Drug Arrests | ||||
Key Findings
3 Killings by Police
327 civilian complaints of police misconduct
10% were ruled in favor of civilians from 2013-20.
71,223 arrests made
65% of all arrests were for low-level, non-violent offenses from 2013-20.
Police Funding By Year
$35.53M | $197 per Resident
More Police Funding per Capita than 11% of Depts
Source: US Census Bureau
Funds taken from communities in fines and forfeitures
Total: $9.64M from 2010-19
Source: US Census Bureau
Number of officers per 1k population
255 Officers | 15 per 10k Residents
More Officers per Population than 50% of Depts
Source: Federal LEOKA Database
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Less-Lethal Force
Used More Force per Arrest than 26% of Depts
406 Incidents | 57 every 10k arrests | ▶-15%
Source: Police Department
Open in New Window
Deadly Force
3 Killings by Police from 2013-20 | 0.4 every 10k arrests
^ More Killings by Police per Arrest than 19% of Depts
Source: Mapping Police Violence
Deadly Force by Armed Status
33% Unarmed | 33% Did Not Allegedly Have a Gun
Unarmed
Other
Alleged Gun
Vehicle
^ More Unarmed People Killed per Arrest than N/A of Depts
Open in New Window
Police Violence by Race
Black
Latinx
N.Am
API
Other
White
Population of Sioux Falls
Sioux Falls Police Dept Demographics
People Arrested
People Killed
Source: Uniform Crime Report, Mapping Police Violence, LEMAS
Total civilian complaints
327 from 2013-20 | 10% Ruled in Favor of Civilians
Arrests By Year
71,223 Arrests Reported from 2013-2020
More Info
Arrests for Low Level Offenses
46,284 Arrests | 37 per 1k residents
^ Higher Arrest Rate for Low Level Offenses than 85% of Depts
Percent of total arrests by type
All Arrests for Low Level Offenses ( 65% )
Drug Possession ( 16% )
Violent Crime ( 4% )
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Homicides Unsolved
41 Homicides from 2013-19 | 10 Unsolved
^ Solved Fewer Homicides than 57% of Depts
South Dakota Police Department Scores
Rankings are based upon a 0 to 100 percentage scale. Departments with higher scores use less force, make fewer arrests for low level offenses, solve murder cases more often, hold officers more accountable and spend less on policing overall.
Overall Scores for Depts where We Have Obtained the Most Data.
Tap "show more" to see extended list
| Police Department | Score | 5YR |
|---|---|---|
| 2. Rapid City 42% | ▶-16% | |
| 1. Sioux Falls 47% | ▶-10% | |
| * North Sioux City 37% | ▶-3% | |
| * Flandreau 37% | ▶-1% | |
| * Deadwood 39% | ▶-6% | |
| * Sisseton 41% | ||
| * Wagner 41% | ||
| * Murdo 41% | ▶-2% | |
| ▶-3% | ||
| ▶+8% | ||
| ▶-2% | ||
| ▶-4% | ||
| ▶+2% | ||
| ▶+1% | ||
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| ▶-6% | ||
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| ▶-4% | ||
| ▶+2% | ||
| ▶-7% | ||
| ▶-8% | ||
| ▶-15% | ||
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| ▶-5% | ||
| Police Department | Score | 5YR |
|---|---|---|
| * Dell Rapids 50% | ||
| * Parker 50% | ▶-2% | |
| * Lake Andes 50% | ||
| * Philip 50% | ▶-1% | |
| * Canistota Canistota 50% | ||
| * Corsica 50% | ||
| * Newell 50% | ||
| * Irene 50% | ▶+3% | |
| ▶-5% | ||
| ▶+7% | ||
| ▶+3% | ||
| ▶+4% | ||
| ▶-3% | ||
| ▶+5% | ||
| ▶+8% | ||
| ▶+5% | ||
| ▶-5% | ||
| ▶-5% | ||
| ▶-1% | ||
| ▶-10% | ||
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| ▶-2% | ||
| ▶+1% | ||
| ▶+4% | ||
| ▶-9% | ||
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| ▶-2% | ||
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| ▶-6% | ||
| ▶-1% | ||
| ▶+9% | ||
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| ▶+1% | ||
| ▶-14% | ||
| ▶+3% | ||
| ▶+2% | ||
| ▶-1% | ||
| ▶+2% | ||
| ▶-2% | ||
| ▶-5% | ||
| ▶-2% | ||
| ▶-11% | ||
| ▶+6% | ||
| ▶-9% | ||
| ▶+3% | ||
* An asterisk indicates this location did not publish enough data to evaluate. Click below to add data to the Scorecard.
About This Scorecard
This is the first nationwide evaluation of policing in the United States. It was built using data from state and federal databases, public records requests to local police departments, and media reports. While police data is never perfect, and there are additional indicators that still need to be tracked, the Police Scorecard is designed to provide insight into many important issues in policing.
Use this Scorecard to identify issues within police departments that require the most urgent interventions and hold officials accountable for implementing solutions. For example, cities with higher rates of low level arrests could benefit most from solutions that create alternatives to policing and arrest for these offenses. In cities where police make fewer arrests overall but use more force when making arrests, communities could benefit significantly from policies designed to hold police accountable for excessive force. And cities where complaints of police misconduct are rarely ruled in favor of civilians could benefit from creating an oversight structure to independently investigate these complaints.
Here's how to start pushing for change
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Contact your Mayor and Police Chief, share your scorecard with them and urge them to enact policies to address the issues you've identified:
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Mayor Paul TenHaken
Phone: 605-367-8800
Email: ptenhaken@siouxfalls.org
Advocacy Tip: There is problematic language in this city's police union contract that could make it harder to hold officers accountable. Learn more about this contract and how to change it at Nixthe6.org. -
Mayor Paul TenHaken
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Look up your state and federal representatives below, then tell them to take action to hold police accountable in your community.
Join a team of researchers, students, data scientists, activists and organizers working to collect, analyze and use data for justice and accountability.
Create data visualizations and content that raises awareness about solutions to the issues identified by the data.
If you have feedback, questions about the project, or need support with an advocacy campaign, contact our Project Lead, Samuel Sinyangwe.
What's Next
Step 1: COMPLETED
Obtain data on 100 California cities. Refine methodology in response to feedback from communities, researchers and local officials.
Step 2: COMPLETED
Expand to every major law enforcement agency in America and include additional indicators such as police budgets and jail incarceration.
Step 3: IN PROGRESS
Inform data-driven solutions nationwide. Update as new federal, state and local data are collected. Track progress and hold cities accountable to results.